There's no question that this is a busy moment throughout America's transportation systems. If you want to hear about it from someone other than me, here are some news items I found interesting over the weekend.
The Times of Trenton editorial staff says it's time to seize the day on the President's high-speed rail vision.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution's Ariel Hart finds bids for stimulus projects coming in at 43% below estimates across Georgia, 50% below estimates in Atlanta, with hundreds of jobs being created. Reuters' Lisa Lambert reports that construction job losses in May were the lowest since August 2008, particularly for nonresidential construction, which includes many stimulus projects.
The Huffington Post's Susan Demas finds Commerce Secretary Locke and Michigan Governor Granholm on the same page; both say transitioning to train and transit equipment could revive auto factories, workers, and engineers. That idea is echoed on the Infrastructurist blog and the editorial pages of the Kalamazoo Gazette.
That's the view from here, for now. Happy reading, all.
I think you're making the right connections...
...perhaps we've found the money we need to put HSR-and the Midwest-to work!
Posted by: Zach | June 09, 2009 at 08:48 PM
We share your enthusiasm in the Pacific Northwest.
High Speed Rail (HSR) is in our nations best interest as fuel prices begin their inevitable climb upwards in the future. Trains get much higher fuel economy per passenger mile than both planes and cars, while emitting far fewer green house gases. Emerging alternate energy sources will likely provide electricity – something our current fleet of autos, buses, and planes will find difficult to convert to. Rail lines are quite easily electrified.
Our fast tilt trains running between Vancouver, BC and Eugene, OR for the last 10 years have shown remarkable ridership gains each year. More than twice as many people now choose trains between Seattle and Portland than planes. Impressive results, given that our 125 mph trains have been limited to just 79 mph for lack of federally mandated track, and signal improvements along the corridor. We embrace President Obamas vision for future travel between medium distance cities in our nation.
Mike Skehan, Member, All Aboard Washington
Posted by: Michael Skehan | June 10, 2009 at 10:04 AM
i enjoyed reading your articles! thanks for the post! interesting and timely nowadays.
Posted by: Jedd Sullivan | July 01, 2009 at 11:35 AM